In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) yesterday officially celebrated its designation as an R1 – Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). The polytechnic institute is now the only R1-HSI in the state, just one of two in the Northeastern US, and one of 22 such institutions across the country.
The HSI designation is given by the U.S. Department of Education. R1 (very high research status) is the highest classification given by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
Achieving HSI status is part of NJIT’s current strategic plan in growing the institution’s diversity and better serving the city of Newark, the state and nation.
Supporting this goal was the launch of NJIT’s Hispanic and Latinx Leadership Council, which seeks to fuel the enrollment of Hispanic students and deepen relationships with Hispanic and Latinx alumni, businesses and organizations.
The effort helped NJIT grow its Hispanic undergraduate population from 20% to 25% in the fall of 2022, enabling the university to reach the eligibility threshold for HSI status.
Elisa Charters, chair of Latinas United for Political Empowerment (LUPE) and NJIT Board of Trustee, told the audience gathered at NJIT’s Central King Building that the theme of this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month is “Pioneers of Change: Shaping the Future Together.”
“This theme recognizes the many Hispanics who have been able to enact changes. It encompasses the spirit of innovation, resilience and unity that defines the Hispanic experience. We all come here together in unity to celebrate our resilience and our determination to pursue the American dream,” Charters said.
“NJIT provides Latino students with the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with some of the brightest minds in academia,” Charters continued. “This exposure to top tier research and faculty expertise – and Latino faculty expertise I might add – will significantly enhance the overall educational experience for our community, fostering intellectual growth and preparing our children for generations to come … as leaders in the STEM field here in New Jersey and beyond.”
NJIT President Teik C. Lim thanked the NJIT Board of Trustees and the Hispanic and Latinx Leadership Council for their assistance in achieving HSI status.
“NJIT is one of the most diverse universities in the nation,” Lim said. “We are in the top 20 in the production of Black and Hispanic engineers in the country and we are the top producer of Black and Hispanic engineers in New Jersey. Sixty-two percent of all STEM graduates from New Jersey’s public institutions graduate from NJIT.”
Lim, who himself is an immigrant from Malaysia, said the progress of this country is driven by two things: technology and immigration. Though he said that immigration is a challenge these days, he added, “We must still want to welcome the best and brightest from around the world in order for this country to move forward.”
Before coming to NJIT, Lim led the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) as interim president from 2020-2022. He was provost and vice president for academic affairs at UTA from 2017-2020. While at the institution, he helped co-found the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities, an association of universities that are both HSI and in the top 5% of universities for research as determined by the Carnegie Classification.
“When the alliance was established, it was odd that among all 16 of us, not one person was a Hispanic president,” Lim said.
He had to leave the alliance when he became NJIT president (since the institute, at the time, was not an HSI). “As I left the group’s last meeting, I told them, ‘I’ll be back. … Now, two years later, they’ve welcomed me back.”
Lim said he has been supporting and advocating for HSI designations for the past seven years. “For all of you who are Hispanic … for all practical purposes … I am Hispanic too,” he told the audience.
He added that if companies want to diversify their workforce, they must come to NJIT to hire its students who are the “best and brightest.”
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